Archive for: roland garros

Rafael Nadal’s, Roger Federer’s 2012 French Open outfits!!

This is what Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer will wear at the 2012 French Open, where Rafa will try to win his 7th French Open title!!

Ana Ivanovic’s 2012 French Open dress!

This is what former World No. 1 Ana Ivanovic will wear at the 2012 French Open!

Andy Murray’s French Open 2012 outfit!

This is what Andy Murray will wear to the 2012 French Open!

Baby Federer Produces Yet Another Magic Shot

I love watching Roger Federer hitting amazing shots. Here is an old shot that I came across recently.

Something about Grand Slams

Tennis has many tournaments in each season or year, but there are only four tournaments that mean the most to players who desire praise. The four Grand Slam tournaments are the Australian Open, the French Open, the Championships Wimbledon, and the U.S. Open. Let me tell you a little bit about the history of each of these four glorious events of tennis. First up, the first Grand Slam of the year, the Australian Open. It has been played in seven different locations since 1905, when it was first played on grass. In 1988, the surface changed to hard courts, and the location of the Grand Slam stayed permanently in Melbourne, Australia. And here is a twist: the Australian Open was not even a Grand Slam until 1924! Since this tournament is played in the summertime of the southern hemisphere, there is a extreme-heat policy, since the temperatures can reach dangerous levels that could harm players.

Next up is the French Open, also known as Roland Garros, which is played in the city of love: Paris, France. This event has been played in four different venues since it started in 1891, (1897 for the women), and it was not official a Grand Slam tournament until 1925, when it was known as the French Championships. The French Open played on clay, is usually played around the end of May, and carries on for two weeks, just like all of the other Grand Slam tournaments. There was talk in 2010 about the French Open venue, as it was thought as being too small, and there was talk that it would be played in a bigger venue, but the rumors were put to a halt when the French Tennis Federation decided to keep the venue and build bigger stadiums, as well as build a roof on the main stadium.

The third Grand Slam of the year is quite special, as it is played on grass that is mowed down to a length on 8 millimeters! This event is called The Championships Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon, and is played in Wimbledon, London, England. Here are some cool facts about this Grand Slam: it is sometimes called SW19, because that is the post code of the area where Wimbledon’s venue is, which is the All England Club; the event started all the back at 1877; and Wimbledon was not played twice in its history, due to the outbreak of Word War I and Word War II. Wimbledon has had a roof since 2009, when it was decided that at least one court, the main stadium, should have a roof due to the annual rain reports at the tournament.

The last Grand Slam of the year is the U.S. Open, which is held in the Big Apple: New York, USA. Some fun facts about it are that it was first held in 1881 the state of Rhode Island; the U.S. Open has been played on three different surfaces, grass, then clay, then hard, in its history; it is held every year for two weeks, with one week before the Labor Day weekend, and one week after; and the main stadium of the venue is Arthur Ashe Stadium, which is the largest outdoor tennis-only stadium in the world!

The Grand Slams have a great history behind them, and that is why the history of these great tournaments is well worth knowing!

Na wins French Open 2011

Li Na has become the first Chinese Grand Slam champion in tennis history, after she bested Italian defending champion Francesca Schiavone in straight sets to capture the French Open title.

Na defeated Schiavone with a tough score of 6-4 7-6(0). Schiavone hit a backhand long to give Na the victory that would put her name into history.

“Today is the dream come true,” Li said shortly after the trophy presentation. “Like I was a young player, I want be the Grand Slam champion. But today. . . Someone saying I’m getting old. So, you know, the old woman like the dream come true. Not easy.”

Congratulations Na!

Rafael Nadal To Strong for Roger Federer and Wins 6th French Open Title

Rafael Nadal has won his 6th French Open Mens Singles title by defeating Roger Federer in todays final.

Nadal started off very strong with Roger hanging in their nicely. Nadal scrapped through the first two sets and then in the third set Roger looked out of sorts, but when it got to 5-5 he played an amazing game and then held to win the set 7-5.

However, in the fourth set Roger had break point opportunities in the first game, but wasnt able to convert. After this it seemed like Nadal just got an extra burst of energy that Roger didnt have. Nadal finally won the fourth set 6-1.

Congrats to Rafa!

Rafael Nadal defeated Roger Federer 7-5 7-6 5-7 6-1.

What is it Like to be a Stringer at a Grand Slam or Roland Garros

Here is a quick look inside the stringers world at a Grand Slam event. At Roland Garros and other Grand Slam events stringers have to do at the very least 38 racquets per day and they all need to be perfect.

French Open Day 7 Round Up

Mens Singles:

There were some very interesting results today. Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray easily won through into the fourth, although Murray did twist his ankle mid way through the match but was able to close it out. Gilles Simon continued his impressive run with a strong win over Mardy Fish. I tipped Simon to be a very strong contender this year and he is living up to the hype.

Novak Djokovic continued his winning streak with a four set win over Juan Martin Del Potro. Del Potro is heading back from injury so expect better results from him later in the year.

The upset of the day belonged to Ivan Ljubicic who defeated Fernando Verdasco (16) 6-3 7-6 6-4.

Womens Singles:

In the womens side of the draw it was a bit boring today. All the top seeds pushed through, except Kaia Kanepi (16) who lost to Ekaterina Marakova in straight sets 6-4 7-5.

French Open Day 6 Round Up

Mens Singles:

What a day in the mens singles. David Ferrer and Roger Federer were both in action and they didnt disappoint, both advanced very easily in straight sets. Additionally, we mentioned at the start of the tournament to watch Fabio Fognini and he has played some amazing tennis so far to progress to the fourth round.

The match of the day was Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Stanislas Wawrinka. Both players have amazing clay court records and it was going to be a very tough match. In the end Wawrinka was a little too strong with a victory, 4-6 6-7 7-6 6-2 6-3.

Womens Singles:

There were a lot of strong performances with Zvonareva, Kuznetsova and Schiavone all winning. Casualties were Samantha Stosur who lost to Gisela Dulko 6-4 1-6 6-3. Plus top seed Caroline Wozniacki was thumped on center court by Daniela Hantuchova 6-1 6-3.

Roland Garros Refurbishment Not Going to Harm the Environment

Roland Garros seems to be behind the other Grand Slams in terms of the stadium and facilities. Thus, Paris has decided to invest $390 million into upgrading Roland Garros with a refurbished center court and retractable roof.

Today the Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoe made a point Saturday of dismissing fears from environmental groups and local residents claim that the construction of a new 5,000-seat court at the Serres d’Auteuil botanical garden will harm the vegetation and flowers.

“I can tell you we will not destroy one single plant or one single flower,” Delanoe said at a news conference Saturday, a day before this year’s second Grand Slam tournament begins. “This botanical garden will be totally preserved.”

Tennis Channel Streaming Live French Open

The Tennis Channel has announced that they will be streaming the French Open in the USA live and on-demand. If you are after more information check out their website.

If your a customer with AT&T U-Verse, Comcast or DirectTV you will be able to get VIP access to Philippe Chatrier Court for free on May 28-30.

Im really looking forward to the French Open!

Venus Williams Backs Out of French Open

Venus Williams, a former world number one and Grand Slam Champion, has withdrawn from the French Open, after her abdominal injury proved to not be sufficiently recovered.

30-year-old Williams joined her sister Serena on the sidelines after announcing her withdrawal from the only Grand Slam on clay. Williams played her last match at the 2011 Australian Open, which triggered an abdominal injury that has not recovered well enough.

The French Open, which will be held from May 22 to June 5, will be the first Grand Slam to not have a Williams sister in the draw since the 2003 U.S. Open.

Venus has never won the French Open, only getting to the final in 2002, where she eventually lost to sister Serena.

Best of luck to you Venus, and get well soon!

Serena Williams Officially Withdraws from Roland Garros

French federation of tennis announced today that Serena Williams withdraw from the Roland Garros. The little Williams sister don’t play an official match since she won Wimbledon in july because of a foot injury caused with a glass, but this is not the only injury for Serena Williams.

At the begin of 2011 she had a blood clots in her lung and she said that this was her scariest moment of her life. She will be replaced by the japanes player Junri Namigata.

Rafa Nadal’s Roland Garros 2011 Outfit Revealed

As you can see it was revealed also Rafael Nadal’ outfit for Roland Garros .

Janice Lucena the creative director, said that this year they chose, together with Rafa, to be inspired by the four elements of the earth.

That’s why they chose blue outfit, so  the colour will be fighting with the clay of the Roland Garros courts .

Inside of the t-shirt it is written a special detail  : ” VAMOS RAFA!”.

Behind instead, there’s  Rafa’s bull logo.

French Open Finals Results

Here is a quick round up of the Finals scores of the French Open. So many players had the tournaments of their lives, but the real standout performance has to be Rafael Nadal yet again!

Mens Singles Final: Rafael Nadal (ESP) bt. Robin Soderling (SWE) = 6-4 6-2 6-4

Womens Singles Final: Francesca Schiavone (ITA) bt. Samantha Stosur (AUS) = 6-4 7-6

Mens Doubles Final: Daniel Nestor (CAN) and Nenad Zimonjic (SRB) bt. Lukas Dlouhy (CZE) and Leander Paes (IND) = 7-5 6-2

Womens Doubles Final: Serena Williams (USA) and Venus Williams (USA) bt. Kveta Peschke (CZE) and Katarina Srebotnik (SLO) = 6-2 6-3

Mixed Doubles Final: Katarina Srebotnik (SLO) and Nenad Zimonjic (SRB) bt. Yaroslava Shvedova (KAZ) and Julian Knowle (AUT) = 4-6 7-6 1-0

Boys Singles Final: Agustin Velotti (ARG) bt. Andrea Collarini (USA) = 6-4 7-5

Girls Singles Final: Elina Svitolina (UKR) bt. Ons Jabeur (TUN) = 6-2 7-5

Boys Doubles Final: Duilio Beretta (PER) and Roberto Quiroz (ECU) bt. Facundo Arguello (ARG) and Agustin Velotti (ARG) = 6-3 6-2

Girls Doubles Final: Timea Babos (HUN) and Sloane Stephens (USA) bt. Lara Arruabarrena-Vecino (ESP) and Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor (ESP) = 6-2 6-3

Watch French Open Online for Free

The Tennis Channel will be offering free live and on-demand broadband streams, with over 125 matches and 200 hours of play during the first 10 days for the French Open.

Roland Garros Could Lose The French Open by 2016

Don’t count defending champion Roger Federer and four-time winner Justine Henin among fans of a proposal to hold the French Open outside Paris beginning in 2016.

Gilbert Ysern, general director of the French tennis federation, told a news conference Saturday relocating the clay-court Grand Slam from Roland Garros is being considered because it needs more space to remain competitive with the three other major tournaments.

Three options are being examined, including one next to Versailles castle. Another possible site is near Disneyland Paris.

The French Open has been at Roland Garros since 1928 and the federation has a contract there till 2015. The French federation assembly is expected to make its decision in February.

“I think by the time I finish my career, the tournament will still be at Roland Garros,” Federer said. “I don’t know if the French Open will one day move to Disney, I doubt it. There is more space outside the city, I understand, but come on …”

Henin accepted that space is an issue at Roland Garros, but said its tradition is one of the French Open’s main assets.

“I hope they find a solution to keep the tournament here,” she said. “The tradition is here. This is my favourite tournament. Maybe (a move outside Paris) will happen.

“You need to be realistic. Compared to other Grand Slam tournaments, which are always getting bigger, it has become difficult in terms of space. Everyone knows that.”

Among the Grand Slam tournaments, only the French Open and Wimbledon have never been moved. While Wimbledon has been updated, facilities at Roland Garros have become outdated. The lack of space for 450,000 annual spectators, players, journalists and sponsors is a problem, while the absence of covered courts leaves the tournament vulnerable to the weather.

“We have to create the Roland Garros of 2040,” French federation vice-president Bernard Giudicelli said. “We will do everything to make sure that Roland Garros 2016 will be played in a bigger and modernized stadium.”

The French Open’s facilities are spread over 21 acres (8.5 hectares), while Melbourne Park — the site of the Australian Open — and Wimbledon each have 49 acres (20 hectares). Flushing Meadows, site of the U.S. Open, has 34.5 acres (14 hectares).

“Some players told us they cannot imagine leaving Paris,” Ysern said. “But if we stay, we have to modernize the facilities to aim for excellency. We need more space and a retractable roof over the centre court.”

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga said there is only one Roland Garros.

“I would prefer to stay here and make the tournament bigger here because this site is wonderful,” Tsonga said.

If the tournament stays in Paris, three adjoining areas will be added to Roland Garros at a cost of about US$251 million. Building a new stadium outside Paris would cost an estimated $754 million.

Versailles castle is 20 kilometres from downtown Paris. Disneyland Paris in Marne-La-Vallee is 48 kilometres from the French capital.

Should the tournament be relocated, preliminary designs envision a 74-acre (30 hectares) site with 55 tennis courts — two with a retractable roof — that would be able to receive up to 60,000 people a day.

via Associated Press

Ernests Gulbis Makes Early Exit from Roland Garros with Leg Injury

Ernests Gulbis was a player everyone was talking about at this years French Open. The young latvian was an outsider to do really well, but in a first day shock he has been elimintated. Gulbis was 2 sets to love down and retired injured. Ernests hurt his right leg in the match against Julien Benneteau of France. Cheer up Ernests there is always next year and Im sure you will have a lot more chances to compete at the Roland Garros.

Rafael Nadal Roland Garros 2010 Photoshoot

This has to be one of the best photoshoots Rafael Nadal has ever done. This shoot took place at the Molitor, which is an abandoned swimming pool near Roland Garros.

Im a big fan of the graffiti on the walls, very cool!

More shots over at the Roland Garros site.